Day After Thanksgiving: Shopping Etiquette from the other side of the counter.
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Zuzu Fassbinder
Little Miss No Tomorrow
Join date: 17 Sep 2004
Posts: 2,048
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11-22-2005 14:53
From: Jamie Bergman Capitalism is the invisible hand that will save the human race. Problems arise when people try to meddle with pure capitalism - if they would just let temporary perturbations work themselves out and refrain from enacting legislation a well self-regulated capitalistic environment would ensue. Call 911, someone overdosed on Ayn Rand. Capitalism is good at allocating scare resources in many cases, but it is by no means a panacea. Externalities are hard to control and tend to invalidate solutions found through free market means. This is especially true of negative externalities like pollution. Barriers to market entry prevent free competition in some sectors. This prevents the forces of competition from acting on the market once a monopoly is established. Without intellectual property protection, there is a disincentive to risk investment in innovations. (yes, suprise! copyright and patents are artificially imposed and not part of pure capitalism) um, thats just off the top of my head...
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From: Bud I don't want no commies in my car. No Christians either.
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Kazuo Murakami
Sofa King
Join date: 31 Aug 2005
Posts: 359
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11-22-2005 15:00
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Jamie Bergman
SL's Largest Distributor
Join date: 17 Feb 2005
Posts: 1,752
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11-23-2005 07:11
From: Zuzu Fassbinder Call 911, someone overdosed on Ayn Rand.
Capitalism is good at allocating scare resources in many cases, but it is by no means a panacea.
Externalities are hard to control and tend to invalidate solutions found through free market means. This is especially true of negative externalities like pollution.
Barriers to market entry prevent free competition in some sectors. This prevents the forces of competition from acting on the market once a monopoly is established.
Without intellectual property protection, there is a disincentive to risk investment in innovations. (yes, suprise! copyright and patents are artificially imposed and not part of pure capitalism)
um, thats just off the top of my head... Externalities are temporary situations. Take pollution for example. Eventually, pollution would have to be dealt with by free market means. Instead, legislation keeps polution by legislating an "allowable" amount of pollution instead of letting the free market take care of it all. |
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Midtown Bienenstich
Registered User
Join date: 18 Sep 2005
Posts: 47
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11-23-2005 07:42
Wal-Marts selling an HP laptop at $378 on Friday... You try staying calm and collective  |
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Ingrid Ingersoll
Archived
Join date: 10 Aug 2004
Posts: 4,601
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11-23-2005 07:50
I was a sales girl at The Gap for years through university so i feel your pain LF. Hope it goes smoothly for you this year. On side note, I had no idea the day after Thanksgiving was the biggest shopping day in the USA. I'm Canadian and Thanksgiving is a lot more low key here. Well, lots of things are.  |
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Jauani Wu
pancake rabbit
Join date: 7 Apr 2003
Posts: 3,835
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11-23-2005 08:03
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Jauani Wu
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Rose Karuna
Lizard Doctor
Join date: 5 Jun 2004
Posts: 3,772
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11-23-2005 08:31
Totally. End the insanity with by the power of your pocket book. Just don't buy tomorrow. It's only one day. No matter how good the price is - don't buy it. Don't go out. Stay at home with the family, play second life, read a book, work in the garden, what ever. I'm not saying don't do Christmas or special days, I guess I'm just saying to quit doing it on THEIR terms. Hallmark, Wallmart, Kmart, etc. has managed to take the "special" out of "Special Days". The tin music box sound of Walgreens Silver Bells playing in the background sort of makes me want to puke. I'm not slamming retail, when I need something I want to physically go to the store and speak with a person and see the item that I'm interested in - I just don't want to do it on the day after Thanksgiving and I want the purchase to be something that I really NEED, not an impuse buy. With regard to what LF said, I don't recall how many saw this story: From: someone Fla. Woman Knocked Out in Shopping Rush Sat Nov 29,2004 5:34 PM ET - ORANGE CITY, Fla. - A mob of shoppers rushing for a sale on DVD players trampled the first woman in line and knocked her unconscious as they scrambled for the shelves at a Wal-Mart Supercenter. But I think it pretty much says it all about how people can act. Instead of buying into the maddness you may want to consider other things to give as gifts, many of which might be more appreciated than a $10.00 DVD player. Babysit for a day? Fix a leaky washer in their sink? Help them clean a closet? Help them clean the garage? Help them hang a picture? Rake their yard? Bring dinner to them one night? Just a thought. 
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Zuzu Fassbinder
Little Miss No Tomorrow
Join date: 17 Sep 2004
Posts: 2,048
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11-23-2005 09:01
From: Jamie Bergman Externalities are temporary situations. Take pollution for example. Eventually, pollution would have to be dealt with by free market means. Instead, legislation keeps polution by legislating an "allowable" amount of pollution instead of letting the free market take care of it all. Where do you live? I need a place to put my spent feul rods from this nuclear plant. Don't worry, the negative impacts are only temporary. I'm not saying to avoid free market solutions. I think that some system of evironmental regulation using free market techniques would be a good solution. But its still regulation and its most certainly not pure capitalism. Perhaps we are misunderstanding each other? If not, then please explain how a pure capitalism "eventually" deals with externalities (you do know what I'm talking about, right?)
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From: Bud I don't want no commies in my car. No Christians either.
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Aleister DaSilva
insert witty phrase here
Join date: 19 May 2005
Posts: 168
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11-23-2005 10:45
Please don't forget to tip your waitperson or delivery driver who takes care of you after you finish shopping or who delivers your food during the day. Nothing is more cheerful that taking half an hour to drive two blocks to the mall, face rude drivers and security guards who won't let you park on the curb for five minutes to deliver food to a store inside, then getting nothing but a "Happy Holidays" from the customer. Be assured that if you don't tip your driver you will be remembered and your food will arrive late and cold the next time you order.
Your former waiter on wheels
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JackBurton Faulkland
PorkChop Express
Join date: 3 Sep 2005
Posts: 478
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11-23-2005 10:49
If you encounter Chuck Norris at any of the malls, graciously bow and back away.
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Rose Karuna
Lizard Doctor
Join date: 5 Jun 2004
Posts: 3,772
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11-23-2005 11:18
 This is nuts? Who would order this???? From: someone Target, whose stores will open at 6 a.m. on Friday, is reprising one of last year’s marketing gimmicks, a wakeup call to shoppers that they can arrange in advance.
This year, it’s also adding tuck-in calls, which customers receive the night before the big shopping day. Come on... Maybe a wake up call, maybe, but a TUCK IN CALL!!! 
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I Do Whatever My Rice Krispies Tell Me To
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